A cuckoo in the nest and cake for breakfast

Something new has arrived in our garden. It’s got lots of knobs, cast iron grills and is powered by gas. In a bout of anthropomorphism, I’m thinking that our old barbecue is looking a little green. With envy that is, rather than just paint. It suspects a cuckoo in the nest, pushing it out of the limelight as the beautiful weather approaches and our outdoor life begins in earnest.

For our dear old kettle and any barbecuing purist, let me assure you that we will carry on cooking on charcoal for the most part. KP has got the indirect heat method of grilling down to a fine art these days and nothing beats a tender, smokey piece of sirloin or a whole leg of lamb to carve and share with friends. I’m thinking of the new interloper as the means of having an extended cooking area that I can use spontaneously.

Instead of standing under the striplight of my (rented) kitchen, while my teens hold their breath at the smell of fish, I can be under the night sky with no complaints to disturb my reverie.

Barbecued breakfast is the meal I’m most looking forward to. Not just rashers and sausages (but again those aromas will be so much nicer in the garden than inside the house), but French toast, grilled peaches, fruit brochettes with yoghurt, even pancakes – not everything has to go straight on the grill.

So combining an al fresco start to the day with my favourite way of using up dinner party leftovers has got to be a good thing. Cake for breakfast. Gingerbread was in abundance after preparing one slab for supper for twelve the night before and another for a huge tea party (more about this in a few days). Generous slices of the cake were grilled first, followed by fairly thick slices of fresh pear dipped in orange juice. I used a cast iron pan on the heat (you can also cook directly on the bars, just make sure all traces of meaty stuff is cleaned off first). Once grill lines were evident, the pears and gingerbread were drizzled with a bit of syrup from a jar of stem ginger (although maple syrup would be good too). Greek yoghurt and honey is another good addition.

Here’s a link to the gingerbread recipe which I follow verbatim from Tamasin Day Lewis and it’s so good I don’t see how it could be improved upon (the raw cake mixture is quite irresistible too).

As someone from a barbecuing nation, I’m not sure if Jeanne of Cooksister ever starts her day with brekkie on the Braai, but I wanted to join her and other South Africans (including fellow Dubai-dweller My Mezzaluna) in marking National Braai Day. I cooked fresh fruit brochettes for her annual barbecue event Braai, the Beloved Country last year (here’s the round-up), so I’ve continued the fruity theme. Cheers Jeanne – Happy Braai-day.

For Dubai dwellers, you have two choices for gas for your barbecue. You can buy a cylinder from Ace Hardware and take it to one of the LPG suppliers for filling (Ace has a list) or use the butane that is supplied for indoor cooking from the home delivery suppliers. You will have to buy a regulator and bottle from them. For more info about Weber here’s the link for the UAE.

Expect many more barbecue-centred articles from me over the coming months (apologies to readers in parts of the world where you are just heading into Winter). What’s the strangest or most unconventional thing you cook on the barbecue?

My husband spoilt me two years ago by buying me an Outdoorsman outdoor gas cooker, I love it and often cook on it instead of my kitchen stove. I’ll also be posting a lot of barbecue dishes over the summer. Your breakfast looks sublime :)

That’s a serious bit of kit and a lovely looking breakfast. Beautiful colours and that blend of tastes and textures sounds perfect. We always like to finish off our BBQ with something sweet like peaches or marshmallows.

I’ve been begging my husband to get us a barbeque (gas one) for our balcony!!!! you can imagine what his answer is :( i love anything with pears in it and im sure it tasted wonderful with the gingercake……what a great combo. so sorry to have missed it at the cakeathon!

Those photos look so tempting. With the weather getting better with each passing day, barbecues are going to light up in every garden around here. The cake & the grilled pear look like a match made in heaven. TOtally yum.

wonderful! we work the double method too! here in germany it especially means grilling all through winter! my grilled breakfast favorite is grilled grapefruit with cinammon sugar and then drizzled w honey!

We’re heading into winter here in the UK but still resolutely using the BBQ! I send my boyfriend out into the cold and dark and he returns with gorgeously grilled meat, fruit and vegetables…bliss! I love doing thick italian bread on the BBQ then rubbing with garlic, olive oil and sea salt to make beautiful bruschetta. If I’m making something sweet it would have to be bananas in foil with chocolate and nuts, but I LOVE the look of that grilled gingerbread too and will be trying soon!

Yes. Yum. Hmmm. Once I put pie cherries (the yellow, not-too-sweet variety) on the BBQ…they became deliciously sweet, and I ate them hot. Happy memories indeed! Our BBQ season is still on, but by the end of October, if we want to grill, that means Dave bundles up and dashes outside to check on things and dashes back in to stay warm. So– enjoy for us!

OMG you have a pistachio Weber?? Envious? Me?? Never! ;o) Love the flavours you have put together here (I’m a sucker for stem ginger). Loe those perfect grill marks on the pears too… Thanks so much or taking part in this event :)